10 Foods and Drinks That Can Help You Quit Smoking

Pick up these foods instead of a cigarette, and you just might quit faster

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Quitting smoking may be difficult, but some simple diet changes can help.

Ask anyone who’s quit smoking (or who has attempted to quit smoking), and he or she will tell you that it’s one of the hardest habits to break. Besides the fact that nicotine is addictive, it’s very difficult to let go of the routine of taking a smoke break. But did you know that, for various reasons, certain foods and drinks could seriously come in handy when you’re trying to quit cold turkey?

One of the most important things to keep in mind when you’re trying to give up cancer sticks is that you really shouldn’t go on a diet. Depriving yourself of your favorite foods could cause you to lose focus and fall right off the wagon. Instead, eat what you want, but keep in mind that certain foods and drinks are more likely to send you reaching for a cigarette. Glucose, for example, stimulates the areas of the brain that are responsible for pleasure, which can increase your cravings. So try to stay away from foods that contain a lot of sugar.

When you’re trying to quit smoking, food serves a couple important functions. One, it gives you something to do with your mouth instead of smoking, and, two, there are actually some foods that have been proven to make cigarettes taste terrible (we’ll get to that). Alcohol, caffeine (especially coffee), and red meat actually make cigarettes taste better, so you might want to cut back on those as well.

Quitting smoking requires a whole lot of will power, commitment, and determination. There are dozens of methods for quitting, from going cold turkey to gradually reducing your intake, from nicotine patches and gum to hypnosis and prescription medicines. But one of the most important and valuable tools at your disposal is something you already consume every day: food. So read on to learn about ten foods and drinks that can help you quit smoking for good.

GinsengStudies have shown that ginseng prevents the “pleasure” neurotransmitter dopamine from being released when you have a cigarette. When taken weekly, it can cut back on the level of enjoyment you get from cigarettes.

MilkAccording to a Duke University study, smokers who drank a glass of milk prior to smoking thought that the cigarette tasted terrible, with a bitter aftertaste. So drink some milk every time you have a craving (or dip your cigarettes in milk and let them dry), and before you know it the thought of cigarettes will disgust you.